The writer in 1 Chronicles continues to focus on the next level of detail within his history book, the genealogy of Israel and his sons.
1 Chronicles 5: Descendants of Reuben
1 The sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel (for he was the firstborn, but because he defiled his father's couch, his birthright was given to the sons of Joseph the son of Israel, so that he could not be enrolled as the oldest son;
2 though Judah became strong among his brothers and a chief came from him, yet the birthright belonged to Joseph),
3 the sons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel: Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi.
4 The sons of Joel: Shemaiah his son, Gog his son, Shimei his son,
5 Micah his son, Reaiah his son, Baal his son,
6 Beerah his son, whom Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria carried away into exile; he was a chief of the Reubenites.
7 And his kinsmen by their clans, when the genealogy of their generations was recorded: the chief, Jeiel, and Zechariah,
8 and Bela the son of Azaz, son of Shema, son of Joel, who lived in Aroer, as far as Nebo and Baal-meon.
9 He also lived to the east as far as the entrance of the desert this side of the Euphrates, because their livestock had multiplied in the land of Gilead.
10 And in the days of Saul they waged war against the Hagrites, who fell into their hand. And they lived in their tents throughout all the region east of Gilead.
Descendants of Gad
11 The sons of Gad lived over against them in the land of Bashan as far as Salecah:
12 Joel the chief, Shapham the second, Janai, and Shaphat in Bashan.
13 And their kinsmen according to their fathers' houses: Michael, Meshullam, Sheba, Jorai, Jacan, Zia and Eber, seven.
14 These were the sons of Abihail the son of Huri, son of Jaroah, son of Gilead, son of Michael, son of Jeshishai, son of Jahdo, son of Buz.
15 Ahi the son of Abdiel, son of Guni, was chief in their fathers' houses,
16 and they lived in Gilead, in Bashan and in its towns, and in all the pasturelands of Sharon to their limits.
17 All of these were recorded in genealogies in the days of Jotham king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam king of Israel.
18 The Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh had valiant men who carried shield and sword, and drew the bow, expert in war, 44,760, able to go to war.
19 They waged war against the Hagrites, Jetur, Naphish, and Nodab.
20 And when they prevailed over them, the Hagrites and all who were with them were given into their hands, for they cried out to God in the battle, and he granted their urgent plea because they trusted in him.
21 They carried off their livestock: 50,000 of their camels, 250,000 sheep, 2,000 donkeys, and 100,000 men alive.
22 For many fell, because the war was of God. And they lived in their place until the exile.
The Half-Tribe of Manasseh
23 The members of the half-tribe of Manasseh lived in the land. They were very numerous from Bashan to Baal-hermon, Senir, and Mount Hermon.
24 These were the heads of their fathers' houses: Epher, Ishi, Eliel, Azriel, Jeremiah, Hodaviah, and Jahdiel, mighty warriors, famous men, heads of their fathers' houses.
25 But they broke faith with the God of their fathers, and whored after the gods of the peoples of the land, whom God had destroyed before them.
26 So the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul king of Assyria, the spirit of Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and he took them into exile, namely, the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, and brought them to Halah, Habor, Hara, and the river Gozan, to this day..
1 Chronicles 6: Descendants of Levi
1 The sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.
2 The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel.
3 The children of Amram: Aaron, Moses, and Miriam. The sons of Aaron: Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.
15 and Jehozadak went into exile when the LORD sent Judah and Jerusalem into exile by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar.
16 The sons of Levi: Gershom, Kohath, and Merari.
17 And these are the names of the sons of Gershom: Libni and Shimei.
18 The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel.
19 The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. These are the clans of the Levites according to their fathers.
20 Of Gershom: Libni his son, Jahath his son, Zimmah his son,
21 Joah his son, Iddo his son, Zerah his son, Jeatherai his son.
22 The sons of Kohath: Amminadab his son, Korah his son, Assir his son,
23 Elkanah his son, Ebiasaph his son, Assir his son,
24 Tahath his son, Uriel his son, Uzziah his son, and Shaul his son.
25 The sons of Elkanah: Amasai and Ahimoth,
26 Elkanah his son, Zophai his son, Nahath his son,
27 Eliab his son, Jeroham his son, Elkanah his son.
28 The sons of Samuel: Joel his firstborn, the second Abijah.
29 The sons of Merari: Mahli, Libni his son, Shimei his son, Uzzah his son,
30 Shimea his son, Haggiah his son, and Asaiah his son.
31 These are the men whom David put in charge of the service of song in the house of the LORD after the ark rested there.
32 They ministered with song before the tabernacle of the tent of meeting until Solomon built the house of the LORD in Jerusalem, and they performed their service according to their order.
33 These are the men who served and their sons. Of the sons of the Kohathites: Heman the singer the son of Joel, son of Samuel,
34 son of Elkanah, son of Jeroham, son of Eliel, son of Toah,
35 son of Zuph, son of Elkanah, son of Mahath, son of Amasai,
36 son of Elkanah, son of Joel, son of Azariah, son of Zephaniah,
37 son of Tahath, son of Assir, son of Ebiasaph, son of Korah,
38 son of Izhar, son of Kohath, son of Levi, son of Israel;
39 and his brother Asaph, who stood on his right hand, namely, Asaph the son of Berechiah, son of Shimea,
40 son of Michael, son of Baaseiah, son of Malchijah,
41 son of Ethni, son of Zerah, son of Adaiah,
42 son of Ethan, son of Zimmah, son of Shimei,
43 son of Jahath, son of Gershom, son of Levi.
44 On the left hand were their brothers, the sons of Merari: Ethan the son of Kishi, son of Abdi, son of Malluch,
45 son of Hashabiah, son of Amaziah, son of Hilkiah,
46 son of Amzi, son of Bani, son of Shemer,
47 son of Mahli, son of Mushi, son of Merari, son of Levi.
48 And their brothers the Levites were appointed for all the service of the tabernacle of the house of God.
49 But Aaron and his sons made offerings on the altar of burnt offering and on the altar of incense for all the work of the Most Holy Place, and to make atonement for Israel, according to all that Moses the servant of God had commanded.
50 These are the sons of Aaron: Eleazar his son, Phinehas his son, Abishua his son,
51 Bukki his son, Uzzi his son, Zerahiah his son,
52 Meraioth his son, Amariah his son, Ahitub his son,
53 Zadok his son, Ahimaaz his son.
54 These are their dwelling places according to their settlements within their borders: to the sons of Aaron of the clans of Kohathites, for theirs was the first lot,
55 to them they gave Hebron in the land of Judah and its surrounding pasturelands,
56 but the fields of the city and its villages they gave to Caleb the son of Jephunneh.
57 To the sons of Aaron they gave the cities of refuge: Hebron, Libnah with its pasturelands, Jattir, Eshtemoa with its pasturelands,
58 Hilen with its pasturelands, Debir with its pasturelands,
59 Ashan with its pasturelands, and Beth-shemesh with its pasturelands;
60 and from the tribe of Benjamin, Gibeon, Geba with its pasturelands, Alemeth with its pasturelands, and Anathoth with its pasturelands. All their cities throughout their clans were thirteen.
61 To the rest of the Kohathites were given by lot out of the clan of the tribe, out of the half-tribe, the half of Manasseh, ten cities.
62 To the Gershomites according to their clans were allotted thirteen cities out of the tribes of Issachar, Asher, Naphtali and Manasseh in Bashan.
63 To the Merarites according to their clans were allotted twelve cities out of the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Zebulun.
64 So the people of Israel gave the Levites the cities with their pasturelands.
65 They gave by lot out of the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin these cities that are mentioned by name.
66 And some of the clans of the sons of Kohath had cities of their territory out of the tribe of Ephraim.
67 They were given the cities of refuge: Shechem with its pasturelands in the hill country of Ephraim, Gezer with its pasturelands,
68 Jokmeam with its pasturelands, Beth-horon with its pasturelands,
69 Aijalon with its pasturelands, Gath-rimmon with its pasturelands,
70 and out of the half-tribe of Manasseh, Aner with its pasturelands, and Bileam with its pasturelands, for the rest of the clans of the Kohathites.
71 To the Gershomites were given out of the clan of the half-tribe of Manasseh: Golan in Bashan with its pasturelands and Ashtaroth with its pasturelands;
72 and out of the tribe of Issachar: Kedesh with its pasturelands, Daberath with its pasturelands,
73 Ramoth with its pasturelands, and Anem with its pasturelands;
74 out of the tribe of Asher: Mashal with its pasturelands, Abdon with its pasturelands,
75 Hukok with its pasturelands, and Rehob with its pasturelands;
76 and out of the tribe of Naphtali: Kedesh in Galilee with its pasturelands, Hammon with its pasturelands, and Kiriathaim with its pasturelands.
77 To the rest of the Merarites were allotted out of the tribe of Zebulun: Rimmono with its pasturelands, Tabor with its pasturelands,
78 and beyond the Jordan at Jericho, on the east side of the Jordan, out of the tribe of Reuben: Bezer in the wilderness with its pasturelands, Jahzah with its pasturelands,
79 Kedemoth with its pasturelands, and Mephaath with its pasturelands;
80 and out of the tribe of Gad: Ramoth in Gilead with its pasturelands, Mahanaim with its pasturelands,
81 Heshbon with its pasturelands, and Jazer with its pasturelands.
Things to think about…
1. The record for the genealogy of Reuben is short and not of great significance. It begins with the reason, “The sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel (for he was the firstborn, but because he defiled his father's couch, his birthright was given to the sons of Joseph the son of Israel, so that he could not be enrolled as the oldest son;”, 1 Chr 5:1. The sons of Joseph especially Ephraim were ultimately given the rights of the firstborn. Further down in vs 6 we read “whom Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria carried away into exile”. The year here is 722BC when the Assyrians took the ten northern tribes. The only glimmer of blessing here is recorded Reuben “lived to the east as far as the entrance of the desert this side of the Euphrates, because their livestock had multiplied in the land of Gilead. And in the days of Saul they waged war against the Hagrites, who fell into their hand. And they lived in their tents throughout all the region east of Gilead”, vss 9 and 10. Being part of the blessing of Israel meant that they had victory when they went out to conquer the land. This is the same for us. Regardless of our family background or history, Christ makes up for any shortfall. In Him we can take the land.
2. Gad lived on the eastern side of the Jordan with the tribe of Reuben, 1Chr 5:11 and the half tribe of Manasseh. Again we read that records were kept in the days of Jotham of Judah and Jereboam of Israel, vs 18 around 750BC. Gad trusted in God in battle until they were taken in exile by Assyria, vss 20-22. It’s not how we start our journey, but how we finish that is the important thing. Gad unfortunately did not hold the line and were taken in exile in 722BC.
3. The half tribe of Manasseh that dwelt with Gad and Reuben seem to have been the instigators of the downfall for these three tribes. It is recorded in their genealogy that “they broke faith with the God of their fathers, and whored after the gods of the peoples of the land, whom God had destroyed before them”, vs 25 and Pul the Assyrian king came against them, vs 26. Manasseh was large and lived on both sides of the Jordan, but it seems the eastern side were not a good influence on their tribal brothers. Older siblings are an example to the younger ones. This is probably why we are tougher on the older ones. But it is also a place of honour and privilege that must also be acknowledged. If this privilege is abused, then the honour is taken away. Reuben is certainly the best example in the tribes of Israel.
4. There is a time stamp recorded bu the writer here. He says in 1 Chr 5:26 “took them into exile, namely, the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, and brought them to Halah, Habor, Hara, and the river Gozan, to this day”. This after 722BC likely after the Babylonian captivity of 586BC as well because the writer includes that captivity elsewhere. The Jews were living in this area of Iran right up until 1948 when they were strongly urged to move back to Israel.
5. The tribe of Levi takes up the whole 81 verses of 1 Chronicles 6. The reasoning being that they had a central role in the administration, teaching and the worship required by the law from the time of the exodus on through the conquering of the land of Israel. As with all the tribes there are heros and villans. We Nadab and Abihu mentioned in 1 Chr 6:3. These first 2 sons of Aaron burned strange fire to the Lord. A blend of incense that was not prescribed. The Lord then burned them with fire, Lev 10. But we also see another of Aaron’s descendants, a grandson, Phinehas who stopped the plague of the Lord with his righteous zeal against sin in the matter of Cozbi and the Moabites/Midianites, Num 25 before Israel entered Canaan.
6. There are point markers within the text which help us with the periods of history which certain characters fall. In 1 Chr 6:10 we read of “Azariah (it was he who served as priest in the house that Solomon built in Jerusalem)”. Azariah would have served around 957-930BC, as the temple was completed in 957BC.
7. In a similar way we read in 1 Chr 6:15 “Jehozadak went into exile when the LORD sent Judah and Jerusalem into exile by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar”. This is date/time stamped at 587BC which helps us with chronologies and the names of other characters at this period. All of which help us understand the Word of God better.
8. Elkanah the priest is mentioned in 1 Chr 6:27, but not his sons. We know that his sons were corrupt and the Lord struck them down when they fought the Philistines. Samuel was raised by Elkanah and Samuel’s sons are mentioned in vs 28 “The sons of Samuel: Joel his firstborn, the second Abijah”. We also know that although Samuel’s sons were not killed as Elkanah’s sons, they did not follow the Lord as Samuel did. Yet there is some encouragement as we read “Heman the singer the son of Joel, son of Samuel,”, vs 33. Faith can return in grandchildren where it skipped a generation.
9. The Levites were appointed for service work in the tabernacle, 1Chr 6:48, while the sons of Aaron served as priests, vs 49. From 1Ch6 54-81 we read of the Levites and the sons of Aaron being given cities of Refuge and the pasturelands from all the other tribes in Israel. The Levites and the Priests were to administer the law and teach within the tribes so that the children of Israel knew how to serve and worship the Lord their God. Unfortunately, we read later that the people rejected the law and then went into captivity. But the initial layout of the land and its distribution was wise. This is the role of local churches that dot the towns and cites of the world. The local expression of Pastors, elders and ministry leaders (deacons) are to keep the words of Jesus as salt and light within the community. This is why it is important to pray and ask that the Lord keeps these local churches healthy. It is a mercy for any country to have healthy Christ centred churches within its borders. We see the corruption and chaos that ensues when the Word of God and the people of God are suppressed.
Vision Point for cell groups
CBC’s Vision :- To be a growing biblical church community, significantly influencing our city and beyond, through intentional outreach, fulfilling our mission.
Sermon title was “Jerusalem – the glorious city” - from Psalm 87
1. What is your knowledge of Jerusalem like? From your present knowledge what can you say about the city?
2. Psalm 87 says that those from the regions of Egypt, Cush, Philistia and Babylon will be born in her, vss 4-6. How can someone be born in Jerusalem when the have been born in another country?
3. Jesus tells Nicodemus in John 3 that he must be born again and that he must be born from above. What does this mean?
4. The sons of Korah say in vs 7 “"All my springs are in you." Jesus calls Himself the Water of life and He spoke to the woman at the well in John 4 that the water he would give her would never run out, but in fact well up within her. What did Jesus mean? What does it mean for us?
Prayer Points
1. People would join us over Christmas.
2. Christmas season – joy and unity promoted in Christ.
3. Growth in our kids and youth ministries
4. Pray for testimonies that people will be giving. Please consider when you would like to give yours.
5. Pray for other building projects – café roof, the repair of the house roof.
6. Witness over the Christmas season.
7. Growth, conversions, joy in the Word and Spirit to remain and increase.
Praise Points
1. Hannah Freeman’s testimony. Very heartfelt and encouraging.
2. Our worship – Thanks Josh, Sam and Ben. Also iMan for getting the internet working. Thanks Dan for computer and Tim for sound.
3. The rain has been a blessing. Pray for safety, especially on the roads as more is on its way.
Announcements
1. Country Carols, monster trucks, fire works – Sat 11th Dec. Must book online to get tickets. Go to the Tivoli drive in website. Feel free to park at CBC if required.
2. Men’s fishing trip 11th Dec. Now full.
3. Kids@church back. Please check your rosters
4. Recharge Youth – last one – skating night this Friday night.
5. Church bank details bsb:- 704 913 and Acc number:- 4000 4388 1
